Home Energy Audit in Somerville, NJ – All you need to know

Elevating your home’s energy efficiency in Somerville, NJ starts with a detailed Home Energy Audit. This process provides homeowners with the information necessary to make informed upgrades, avoid potential complications, and greatly improve living conditions.

The pathway to understanding your home’s energy consumption starts with the building envelope and ductwork, indispensable for anyone aspiring to cut down their energy footprint. With HVAC systems accounting for about 40% of home energy use, they usually are the focus, especially in older properties where efficiency improvements can make a significant impact.

When it’s time to get a home energy audit in Somerville, NJ

Have your energy bills been unusually high or persistently increasing? It may be a signal that you should get a home energy audit. In Somerville, NJ, undergoing a home energy audit means a full inspection of your home’s energy efficiency, covering your insulation, HVAC system, and other crucial areas.

What are the benefits of conducting a home energy audit?

A home energy audit can also make your home a lot more comfortable. The comfort enhancement comes from the improved operation of your heating and cooling systems and from ensuring that the insulation in your home is up to standard. Hence, you will avoid the common cold and hot spots or the uncontrollable drafts that inevitably occur in older homes with outdated systems.

You can also find problems early before they become more expensive and damaging to your home. The presence of leaks in ductwork can escalate moisture levels, resulting in water damage. The real danger lies in not realizing there’s an issue without an inspection, until that issue has ballooned into a much bigger problem.

You can find duct leakages that are notorious for spreading toxic mold and other allergens throughout your home. The expenditure of time and money on an energy audit is a worthwhile investment that not only protects your home’s value but also the safety of those inside.

A home energy auditor will give you the full picture behind your home’s energy efficiencies. For a comprehensive evaluation of your home, it’s essential to depend on the skills of trained professionals who utilize a variety of sophisticated equipment. Discovering energy inefficiencies in your home without the training or the advanced, costly tools needed for an audit is nearly out of reach.

Exploring the Unknown: What’s Behind Your Walls?

In a typical energy audit, thermal imaging is employed to meticulously scan the walls for any hotspots, indicating possible air leaks and areas for energy efficiency gains. Playing a pivotal role in the inspection of your home’s insulation, cold spots may reveal cracks that allow the intrusion of cold air, compelling your HVAC system to run beyond its normal operation. In Somerville, NJ, the home energy auditor assigned to your case will also conduct a physical survey of your home, assessing the sealing quality of windows, doors, and other potential areas.

What is a blower door and duct leakage test?

A blower door test can tell you everything you need to know about air exchanges in your home. The method involves depressurizing your home to a level of 50 pascals, thereby drawing in air through any leaks and quantifying the amount of untreated air.

A duct leakage test checks your ductwork, instead of your building envelope. Connecting a duct blaster to an HVAC unit or the main return and sealing the other parts of the system sets up an enclosed test environment for accurately measuring ductwork leaks.

Conducting a home energy audit for an older home

If you have an older home in Somerville, NJ, there’s a high chance there are energy inefficiencies like gaps in your insulation and broken seals. Part of a standard home energy audit is to evaluate how well your attic is insulated and to suggest better insulation options that could lead to savings on your energy bills.

WIdentifying energy loss in an older home can be a complex task. By conducting a home energy audit in Somerville, NJ, you can identify and isolate these issues, directing your efforts to the most critical areas. It’s an additional example of how a home energy audit can be financially beneficial.

What do you do after your home energy audit?

Following a home energy audit in Somerville, NJ, you will be informed about three critical aspects: the energy efficiency status of your home, areas requiring improvements, and the ideal strategies to tackle those shortcomings. In the process of improving your home, this information will serve as a key resource to inform your choices, helping you secure the most favorable scenarios with advice from experts.

Your energy auditor will reveal opportunities for repairs and enhancements, ensuring you understand the cost implications for each potential upgrade. You could also be entitled to benefits and incentives that promote energy efficiency in your home, alleviating the financial burden associated with these improvements.

The process of a home energy audit?

The diagnostic tools we use for a home energy audit are a blower door test and a thermal imager. Finding leaky spots can be challenging, yet the process becomes simpler as a blower door depressurizes your home, causing outside air to enter with greater force. Feeling the air seep through leaky windows and doors will be unmistakable. A subsequent thermal imager walkthrough helps us to map out the temperature differences. This approach allows us to swiftly pinpoint problem areas in your home and provide recommendations for their resolution. Completing a home energy audit in approximately two hours can result in lifelong advantages for the homeowner.

How much does a home energy audit cost?

Our service costs $390, covering a blower door test to depressurize the home, a thermal imaging inspection, identification of issues, and recommendations for enhancements.

For an extra $250, you can request a duct leakage test to be part of your audit.

Get your home energy audit now

If you need a home energy audit, look no further! Local Energy Audits is a veteran-owned business that takes pride in offering customers quality care and full-service home energy inspections. Call us during our regular business hours or contact us online to schedule your appointment. We’re keen to provide you with insights on how a home energy audit can benefit you and detail the process for your home.

Local Energy Audits: Your Partner in Building Efficiency